HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. (AP) -Less than 24 hours after a stunning upset, the New York Jets were already focused on trying to pull off another.
“We still haven’t played our best game of the season,” defensive end Shaun Ellis said Monday. “We want to put together a good effort and put it all together.”
The Jets (2-8) snapped a six-game skid with a 19-16 overtime victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday. The celebration was short-lived, though, because the Jets are playing again Thursday and the 9-1 Dallas Cowboys are the opponent.
“Unfortunately with the short week, we move on pretty quickly here and that’s what we’re doing,” coach Eric Mangini said. “We put the Steelers to bed. Now we’re working on the Cowboys.”
The Jets again are faced with a game that few outside the team think they can win. Dallas is second to New England in total offense as Tony Romo and Terrell Owens have hooked up for seven touchdowns in the last three games.
“Pittsburgh was a very physical team and Dallas is as well,” linebacker Victor Hobson said. “Offensively, they have a lot of weapons with a quarterback who makes a lot of plays, good receivers, a good tight end and running backs. It’s going to be hard, but that’s part of playing the game.”
The Jets used their bye week to make much-needed adjustments, especially on defense, and prepare for the Steelers. It certainly showed as the NFL’s worst-ranked run defense held Pittsburgh’s Willie Parker to 52 yards and sacked Ben Roethlisberger seven times after coming in with just nine through nine games.
“During the bye week, we just went back to the basics,” rookie linebacker David Harris said. “We went over everything that was hurting us: technique, gap responsibilities, and each guy just did their job.”
So did the coaching staff, which drew up an outstanding game plan. On offense, Mangini and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer have been highly criticized for moving away from the run too early in games. That changed Sunday, when Thomas Jones carried the ball 30 times and ran for 117 yards against a defense that hadn’t allowed a 100-yard rusher in 35 games.
“It felt good to be able to get the ball that many times and get into a rhythm,” Jones said. “The offensive line was able to get into a rhythm and coach Schottenheimer made the calls at the right time and put us in a good position to be successful.”
There’s no time for the Jets to rest on their laurels, though, not with three days to prepare.
“They’re going through the same thing, too, so it will be who prepares the best on short notice,” said Ellis, who had two sacks Sunday.
The Cowboys are used to the short, midseason turnaround with their annual Thanksgiving game. Defensive lineman Kenyon Coleman, who played for Dallas the past four seasons, doesn’t buy into the idea the Jets will be at a disadvantage.
“We’ve got a lot of veterans on this team and we’ve got guys who have played on Thursdays and the Thanksgiving game, so I think the guys know what it’s going to take,” he said. “I think they’re going to make the most of this short week we have to get prepared mentally and physically.”
New York used Monday as a review day, with some scouting of the Cowboys, along with an initial game plan. The Jets will have a full day of practice Tuesday and then have a walkthrough-type of day Wednesday before heading to Dallas.
“Everything has got to be accelerated in terms of individual preparation, the team’s overall preparation with game-planning, situational planning, things like that, and that’s what we’re focused on right now,” Mangini said.
Despite the disparity in records, the Jets don’t expect the Cowboys to take them lightly. Especially after what New York did against Pittsburgh.
“When you’re playing championship ball like they are, I think you’re really focused on a week-to-week basis,” wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery said of the Cowboys. “I think they’re aware of the type of team we are and they’ll be ready to play.”
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